COLLEGE PARK, Md. -- Senior heavyweight Youssif Hemida will wrap up his collegiate campaign this week, participating in his third consecutive NCAA Championships, which will take place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on March 21-23. 

Hemida earned the 10th overall seed in the heavyweight class and will take on Buffalo's Jake Gunning in the first round of the event. 

The returning All-American enters the competition after earning a third-place finish at the 2019 Big Ten Championships earlier this month. Hemida entered the competition unseeded before topping a trio of ranked wrestlers on the way to his highest placing in his career. 

Live stats for the 2019 NCAA Championships will be provided by TrackWrestling. Fans can catch all the action live on the ESPN family of networks, which includes the WatchESPN app and website (cable provider required). Updates throughout the event will also be provided via the Maryland wrestling twitter account. 

Redshirt senior Alfred Bannister is the first alternate in 149-pound weight class this weekend. Should a wrestler be unable to compete, Bannister would enter as the No. 33 wrestler in the weight class. 
 

TV INFO

 

Date	Time (ET)	Session	Networks	Number of ESPN3 Feeds
Thur, Mar 21	12 - 3:30 p.m.	First Round	ESPNU/ESPN3	Eight
	7 - 10:30 p.m.	Second Round	ESPN/ESPN3	Eight
Fri, Mar 22	11 a.m. - 2 p.m.	Quarterfinals	ESPNU/ESPN3	Eight
	8 p.m. - 11 p.m.	Semifinals	ESPN/ESPN3	Six
Sat, Mar 23	11 a.m. - 2 p.m.	Medal Round	ESPNU/ESPN3	Three
	6:30 - 7 p.m.	Pregame Show	ESPN3	N/A
	7 - 10 p.m.	Championship	ESPN/ESPN3	One
	10 p.m.	Postgame Show	ESPN3	N/A

 

NCAA HISTORY 

Hemida will be participating in the NCAA Championships for the third-consecutive season. Last year he became the 20th All-American in Maryland wrestling history after earning an eighth-place finish. 

The Mamaroneck, New York native entered the 2018 NCAA Championships seeded 12th in the heavyweight class. His run to become an All-American was headlined by a second round victory over fifth-seeded Sam Stoll of Iowa. Hemida's Blood Round win was his 30th of the season, which was good for most on the Terrapin roster. It was also his seventh victory over a ranked opponent last season. 

In 2017, Hemida won a pair of matches before falling in the Medal Round of the event -- one win shy of All-American status. The then-sophomore lost by just one point to Arizona State's Tanner Hall, who bested Hemida by a 2-1 score. 
 

B1G RECAP

Hemida's third-place finish at the conference championships earlier this month made him the highest placer in a conference tournament since Maryland joined the Big Ten. He passed Ryan Diehl and Alfred Bannister, who both placed fifth at the 2017 and 2018 championships, respectively. Hemida had previously placed sixth and seventh in the last two conference tournaments. 

Maryland's heavyweight bested Wisconsin's Trent Hillger in the third-place bout, winning by decision over the seventh-seeded wrestler in the tournament. Hemida topped a trio of ranked wrestlers over the course of the weekend: seventh-ranked Hillger, 11th-ranked Chase Singletary (OSU) and 14th-ranked Jennings. He also entered the weekend unseeded, placing higher than five of the eight pre-seeded wrestlers on the way to his automatic qualification to the NCAA Championships. 

Hemida now owns the highest finish in a conference tournament since current associate head coach Jimmy Sheptock placed first at 2014 ACC Championships. He is also the first three-time Big Ten place winner in program history. 

#MOOSETIME

Senior heavyweight Youssif Hemida has impressed for the Terps this dual season, winning a team-best seven dual matches including four in conference play.
 
The returning NCAA All-American has wrestled a tough slate, taking on six ranked opponents over the course of the regular season. His campaign included bouts with top-ranked Gable Steveson (Minnesota) and seventh-ranked Sam Stoll (Iowa).
 

MOOSE GOES GLOBAL

Hemida shined in his first international competition this past fall, taking home a silver medal at the U23 World Championships in Bucharest, Romania. Hemida posted a 3-1 record in the event, outscoring opponents 15-3 in his three wins. His lone loss came in the gold medal match where he fell to Said Gamid Gamidov, a 2015 Junior World Champion.

HEMIDA COMPETES AT NWCA ALL-STAR CLASSIC

Hemida got his 2018-19 season started at the NWCA All-Star Classic in the fall.

The returning All-American met Oklahoma State's Derek White in the 285-pound match. White topped Hemida in sudden victory in the bout. White entered the year as one of the top heavyweights in the country, falling one match shy of All-American status at the NCAA Championships.